New poll with Duggan leading shakes up Detroit mayor’s race

A new poll showing former Detroit Medical Center CEO Mike Duggan leading the pack of mayoral candidates is bound to raise the intensity of the mayoral campaigns heading into the fall with unpredictability. The poll of 500 likely voters from Detroit conducted by Target-Insyght and MIRS, a Lansing political newsletter, shows Duggan ahead with 34.8 % and Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon trailing with 27.4 % while the remaining candidates, State Rep, Fred Durhal Jr., Krystal Crittendon, Lisa Howze and Tom Barrow lag behind.

An earlier poll put Napoleon ahead of Duggan but this latest poll shows that the race for mayor could be a two-person race even though it is unclear what will happen once the candidates have the opportunity to debate. The poll is significant because it comes on the heels of Detroit Mayor Dave Bing pulling out petitions for a possible second mayoral run. However, the poll showed him scoring 11% behind Duggan and Napoleon while Crittendon came in third with 7.3%, Howze and Barrow both received 4.7% and Durhal, 2.5%.